The optimism born of last season's fine home form prompted an ambitious Spurs selection. Wilson Palacios, replacing Didier Zokora in midfield, gives Tottenham more solidity and Aaron Lennon more opportunities to play nearer the touchlines, which has led to an improvement in his form. Here, with interesting alternative striking partnerships at his disposal, Harry Redknapp began with his adventurous yet trusted 4-4-2. He hoped that, when Spurs had possession on the right, Vedran Corluka would support midfield as Benoit Assou-Ekotto would on the left, pushing Luka Modric forward. Yet key to their system was the protection that Palacios affords to his centre-backs when Liverpool regain possession.

Tactical awareness

Tottenham faced the dilemma of Steven Gerrard dropping off Liverpool's main front man, Fernando Torres, and trying to find space to dictate the game behind Ryan Babel and Dirk Kuyt, the visitors' wider attackers whose job was to close the full-backs down and give Liverpool some thrust. Wisely, Ledley King never rose to the bait and maintained his role alongside Sébastien Bassong. After the first quarter, Liverpool had not mustered a goal attempt, as Tom Huddlestone and Palacios patrolled the space effectively in front of the centre-backs. Neither sat too deep and neither vacated space too readily. They merely alternated sensibly and responded to each other's movements. Lennon held wide and Tottenham closed early and monopolised the ball, with Palacios the driver. The half-time question was: could Spurs sustain this approach and how would Liverpool respond?

Did it succeed?

It succeeded because Tottenham stayed compact while maintaining their own width, albeit with Modric holding his ground more in the middle of the field than Lennon. Liverpool's passing was seldom smooth enough for Glen Johnson to make forward runs with confidence (when he did find second-half space, his dribble forced a penalty). Overall, the discipline offered by Lennon and Modric ensured Liverpool's full-backs were largely subdued, while Spurs were close enough to each other in midfield to stop Gerrard dictating. Only in the last 15 minutes, with the arrival of the effervescent Yossi Benayoun for an under-performing Babel, did Spurs concede ground, but, even then, they never lost their discipline or shape.

Major threats

Undoubtedly Lennon's pace to transfer defence into attack is a major weapon if Tottenham have enough of the ball so that he can stay in wide areas. Hugging the touchline, he is a real thorn in the side of any left-back and opponents must stop Lennon receiving a steady supply and converting defence to attack so quickly. Palacios, driving from midfield, was also vitally important. He showed strength, knew when to stand still and when to surge, and was most effective out-shining Javier Mascherano and Lucas Leiva in that area. The midfielder made time for himself, and his physical strength may be the perfect ally for the smaller, nippier lighter weights of Modric, Lennon, Defoe and Keane. Spurs' centre-backs were also very strong, with King and Bassong looking a potential first-choice pairing should they have further injury problems in that area.

Possible weaknesses

Spurs tired physically in the last 15 minutes, when their midfield lost some energy. Without Keane linking, they became less dangerous, and when Modric came off Johnson saw more opportunities to get forward. The introduction of Benayoun, with Gerrard dropping deeper, made Tottenham a little twitchy, but there were still few obvious weaknesses here and, on this performance, little to worry Redknapp – even if one suspects that, had Liverpool made greater attempts to get at Spurs' full-backs, they may have been more successful.